The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1887-02-24

not as violent as had frequently seen
it. The ship managed to hOlC her own
very well, with her head at the west.
AS / never knew what moment a YES
sci might heave in sight l bent on the
small ensign and ran it half way up.
then took the telescope and swept the
horizon carefully but no vessel was in
sight. As was very tired l Welded to
the suggestion of the boatswain and
went below hoping to get couple of
hours sleep.
had slept three-quarters of an hour
when l was awakened by the steward
rushing into my cabin and hauling
upon me like madman.
What is it?'' l cried.
''Oh, sir" responded the steward,
half dead with terror, 1.-The ships sink
ing, sir! We're all going down! I've
been told to fetch you up. The Lord
have mercy on usr'
l rolled onto the deck in my hurry
to leave the bunk. and ran with all my
speed up the companion-ladder; nor
was the ascent difficult, for the ship
was on level keel, pitching heavily,
indeed. but rolling slightly.
Scarcely, however, was my head
up through the companion when l
thought it would have been blown off
my shoulders. The fury and force of the
wind was such as l had never before
in all my life experienced.
Both the bOatswain and Cornish
were at the wheel. and, in order to
reach them, l had to drop upon my
hands and knees and crawl along the
deck When near them, took a grip
of the grating and looked around me-
The first thing | saw was that the
main-sail had blown away from most
of the gaskets. and was laundering in
a thousand rags upon the yard. The
fore-sail was split in halves, and the
port mizzentop-sail sheet had carried
away, and the sail was pealing like
endless discharges of musketry.
All the sparS were safe still. The
lee braces had been let go, the helm
put up, and the ship was racing before
hurricane as furious as a tornado
heading southeast, with wilderness
of foam boiling under her bows.
This, then, was the real gale which
the thunderstorm had been nearly all
night bringing up. The first gale was
but summer breeze compared to it.
The terrible beating of the mizzen-
top sail was making the mizZen-mast,
from the mast-coat to the royal mast
head, Jump like piece ofwhale- bone. AL
though deafened, bewildered and soaked
through with the screaming of the gale
the thunder of the torn canvas and the
spray which the wind tore out of the
sea and hurled through the air, l still
preserved my senses; and, perceiving
that the mizzentop-mast would 90 if
the sail were not got rid of. crawled
on my hands and knees to the foot
of the mast and let 90 the remaining
sheet.
With appalling force, and instanta-
neously, the massive chain was torn
through the sheave-hole, and in less
time than could have counted ten,
one-half the sail had blown into the
main-top, and the rest streamed Ike
the ends of whip-cord from the yard.
Icrawled to the fore-end of the poop
to look at the main-mast; that stood
steady; but while watched the fore
mast the foresail went to pieces, and
the leaping and plunging of the heavy
blocks upon it made the whole mast
suiver so violently that the top-gallant
and royal-mast beat to and fro like a
bow strung and unstrung quickly.
| waited some moments, debating
whether or not to let 90 the foretop-
sail sheets; but, rejecting that the full
force of the wind was kept away from
it by the maintop-sail, and that it
would certainly blow to pieces If l
touched a rope belonging to it, l
dropped on my hands and knees again
and crawled away aft.
81 saw it comingm roared the bosom
IN my ear Il had just time to sing
out to Cornish to slacken the lee braces
and put the helm hard over"
I'VE shall never be able to run" l
beloved back. She'll be popped, as
sure as gun. when the sea comes!
We must heave her to while we can.
No use thinking of the fore-top sail-it
must gon'
But the boatswain could not control
the wheel alone; the blows of the sea
against the rudder made it hard for
even four pairs OF hands to hold the
wheel steady. rushed to the compan-
ion and bawled for the steward. and
when, after a long pause. he emerged,
no sooner did the wind hit HIM than he
rolled down the ladder.
l sprung below. hauled him up by
the collar of his jacket, and drove him
with both hands to his stern up to the
wheel.
Hold on to these spokesi' roared.
And then Cornish and | ran staggering
along the poop.
Get the end of the starboard main
brace to the capstan" cried to HIM
Look alive! ship one of the bars
readY!"
And then l scrambled as best [ could
down on the main-deck, and went floun-
dering forward through the water, that
was now washing higher than my
ankle, to the foretop-sail halyards,
which let go
Crack whiz! away went the sail,
strips of it flying into the sea like
smoke.
struggled back again onto the. poop,
but the violence of the wind was al
most more than | could bear; it beat
the breath out of me; it stung my face
Just as if it were filed with needles; it
roared in my ears; it resembled solid
wall; it rolled me off my knees and
hands. and obliged me to drag myself
against it bit by bit, by whatever came
in mNroad to hold on to.
Cornish lay upon the deck with the
end of the main-brace in his hands,
having taken the necessary turns with
it around the capstan.
laid my weight against the bar and
went to work, and, scrambling and
nantinr haatnn half dead hV the wind